But when it comes to the Philadelphia Eagles, unless you were born well before 1960, you might want to temper your enthusiasm and certainly don't listen to the talking heads who think the 10-1 Eagles are in position to represent the NFC in this year's Super Bowl.

It's OK to be excited. After all, the last two times in team history when Philadelphia was 10-1, the team made it to the Super Bowl — and lost.

But it doesn't mean it's OK to flaunt your favorite apparel and pick a fight with a Pittsburgh Steelers fan or or any followers of the other three NFC East teams: Dallas, New York Giants and Washington. Those teams have won a combined 12 Super Bowls. The Steelers have six Super Bowl trophies. The Eagles? None.

You see, history isn't on the side of Philadelphia.

The last championship the city has won was the 2008 World Series. But since playing and losing the 2009 WS, the Phillies have returned to the cellar and fans are still waiting for the next championship-caliber team to be assembled.

The Flyers last won a Stanley Cup in 1975 and have since lost the last six times they played in the NHL finals, most recently in 2010. Year after year, the Flyers get one-upped by the Pittsburgh Penguins, their hated intrastate rivals. While the Pens embark on annual Stanley Cup quests, the Flyers find it difficult just to string enough wins together late in the season to make it to the postseason.

The 76ers haven't won an NBA championship since 1983 — back in the days of Dr. J, Mo Cheeks, Bobby Jones, Andrew Toney and Moses Malone. The last time they played in the finals was 2001. Since then, they have labored in obscurity and irrelevance and have, on more than one occasion, teetered on the brink of matching the 1972-73 team's NBA record of futility (9-73).

Andy Reid is gone now, but ask any Eagles backer what it's like to think back on the team's NFC dominance from 2001 to 2004, and they might cry. They won't engage in pro football talk with the usual arrogance that typifies a regular at the Linc. If they're smart, they'll simply tip over their Queen and admit that the Eagles, whose symbol is freedom and their city embraces to moniker City of Brotherly Love, are a defeated franchise and that this season's 10-1 start means absolutely nothing if they don't win the last game of the season.

No, it will take a run of multiple NFL championships to erase the scarred history of a team known for choking in the clutch — a team that couldn't beat playoff greenhorns like Tampa Bay and Carolina in NFC title games — and for taking solace in winning seasons and not Super Bowl trophies, while taking umbrage in the correct observations of those who point to the franchise's inability to finish what it starts.

Still, the franchise appears headed down the right road. It took a really bad coaching hire and a return to common sense football to right the ship. Carson Wentz is the real thing, and some mercenary help from the likes of LeGarrette Blount and Jay Ajayi and a defense that epitomizes hard work and a team approach under the leadership of coordinator Dave Schwartz has landed the Eagles on the cusp of another Super Bowl season.

Head coach Doug Pederson wasn't a sexy choice, but he's delivered the goods and is arguably the main reason Wentz is having an MVP season. Wentz, a sophomore signal caller, has thrown 28 touchdown passes and only five interceptions and has completed 60-percent of his passes.

Statistics are nice, and sometimes they tell some of the story. But, when it's results that count, it's the intangibles that determine outcomes and not turnover ratio, name recognition or the Vegas line.

And, it's not only the teams that win the regular season who win the Super Bowl. A 9-7 Giants team won the Super Bowl in 2011. The 2007 New England Patriots were 18-0 but finished 18-1 after losing to the same Giants.

Philadelphia, ranked first in the NFL in points scored (351) and third in points allowed (191), has found a winning formula so far. But, it's now going into December. The weather is getting colder. The things that worked in September, October and November might not work now. Game plans evolve based on continual scouting of opposing teams' tendencies. It's only a matter of time before a defense unlocks the code that has catapulted the Eagles into the best team in not only the NFC but the NFL.

Teams who make the adjustments will be ahead of the game. Teams who don't will be left wondering why they lost in January.

Contact Lee Goodwin at 717-762-2151, lgoodwin@therecordherald.com or on Twitter: @LeeG_RH

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